Gout: What Causes It, The Symptoms, And How To Treat It

If you have ever experienced severe pain in the joint of your big toe, you may want to consult a doctor to make sure you do not have gout. More than half of the cases of gout occur in the big toe, but it can show up in your wrist, knee, elbow, in the foot, and in the fingertips. Gout is actually the most common type of arthritis and causes inflammation, redness, severe pain, and swelling of the joints.

What exactly causes gout?

Gout is the result of an abundance of uric acid in your joints. These microscopic crystals gather in the joint around the soft tissue area. It is an extremely painful incidence and can result in heat, redness, and severe swelling.

Many foods contain a chemical compound known as purines, which are the background for uric acid. The uric acid enters the bloodstream and is then filtered out by the kidneys and passed out of the body through your stool by 30 percent or in your urine by 70 percent.

If you end up with too much uric acid, it could crystalize, and the result is called hyperuricemia. Just about 90 percent of the people who have gout are unable to deal with the uric acids. If you leave your gout alone, it will probably take care of itself in a few days or even a couple of weeks. But make sure you have your gout diagnosed right away. If it does not go away in time or it keeps coming back, you could end up damaging your joint permanently and end up with a compromised range of motion.

What are the risk factors for getting gout?

Here are some things that could increase your chances of getting gout:

Family history – If your genetics include gout, you have a better chance of getting it yourself.

Your age and gender – Men or women can get gout but men have higher levels of uric acid in earlier in life. However, women catch up after they go through menopause.

Medications – Drugs that have salicylate or diuretics have a higher chance of creating gout through their increased uric acid.

Obesity – If you are overweight, your chances of creating gout in your body are much higher because there are greater amounts of body fat.

Additional problems – If you have kidney issues, diabetes, hypothyroidism, or high blood pressure, you have a better chance of developing gout.